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Henry Sowell

Vol. I · Est. 2026

Pl. XLVIII
Field-journal plate: Blue Grosbeak
The Blue Grosbeak plate as rendered on the e-ink frame
As rendered on the frame

The Birds · Plate XLVIII

Blue Grosbeak

Passerina caerulea

Cardinalidae · Taxon 73155

Length5.9–7.5 in (15–19 cm)
Wingspan11–12 in (28–30 cm)
Weight0.9–1.1 oz (26–31 g)

Field marks

  1. Stocky, full-bodied songbird with a very large triangular bill.
  2. Adult male is deep blue overall, often with a small black mask before the eye.
  3. Bill is bicolored: dark upper mandible and silvery lower mandible.
  4. Two conspicuous wingbars, with a chestnut upper bar and paler lower bar.
  5. Dark, rounded wings and a fairly long dark tail; tail may be flicked sideways.
  6. Females and immature birds are warm cinnamon-brown, with wingbars and often bluish tail or scattered blue feathers.

HabitatSemi-open, shrubby vegetation: brushy fields, hedgerows, woodland edges, young regrowth, thickets, and open weedy ground; also uses shrubby growth near water in drier landscapes.

BehaviorOften inconspicuous in low, shrubby cover; males give a rich warbling song from exposed perches. Forages on the ground and in low vegetation, and commonly flicks or twitches its tail sideways.

Palette

deep cobalt bluechestnut orange-brownblacksilvery graywarm cinnamon-brown